


Notes from Two Galaxies

by SableR



Series: The Way Home [2]
Category: Mass Effect: Andromeda
Genre: Courtship, Developing Relationship, F/M, Flirting, Fluff, Love Letters, Pre-Relationship, Romantic Fluff, Sensuality, Sexting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-15
Updated: 2017-04-18
Packaged: 2018-10-19 08:16:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,521
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10635924
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SableR/pseuds/SableR
Summary: Jaal is surprisingly good at writing love letters.  Ryder is unsurprisingly bad.  A correspondence fic of short emails between Ryder and Jaal, starting shortly after they begin flirting with one another.  Featuring some bad poetry, sweet sentiments, and a little cross-cultural exchange.  Follow-up fic toTechie Diplomacy, but can also be read as a standalone.





	1. Chapter 1

_Dearest Fiona,_  
  
_SAM sent me an archive of human literature, including many famous love letters.  I do appreciate it, but more than anything, I want to know what you enjoy in your correspondence._  
  
_If you are comfortable with the idea, let me explain what I enjoy.  I enjoy knowing your mind and heart.  Humans are not as open as my own people, and that difference makes me treasure everything you share with me.  I enjoy making you smile.  I don't need to be in the same room as you to picture it.  And I enjoy the constant reminder that you and I still have so much to learn about one another.  It fills me with the same thrill as looking up at the stars._  
  
_Yours,_  
_Jaal_

*  
Dear Jaal,  
  
You know what?  Forget the stuff SAM sent you.  I mean, you can go ahead and read it.  A lot of it is very famous, poetic, and good for trivia night.  But honestly?  You're doing great without it.  I can't stop thinking about your last email.  Or the one before that.  I've had to put all of your correspondence in a separate archive so I don't constantly lose my train of thought.  
  
I should warn you--I'm pretty terrible at this.  Actually, you probably noticed that already.  As cliche as it sounds, I really enjoy little gestures like this.  Writing emails.  Trying each other's food.  Just being with you.  I like taking time to know you, to feel like I've known you all my life.  Does that sound strange to you?  I'm not always good at expressing it, but I promise that I'm a romantic at heart.

-Fiona

*  
_You have a lovely heart.  I don't need poetry or grand gestures to see that in you.  And no, what you said does not sound strange to me at all._  
  
_Having said that, would you be willing to humor me with a poetry attempt?  I have been reading through SAM's selections, and the form called haiku is the most familiar to me.  It resembles our poetry, though we do not count all of our syllables, and the poems are much longer._  
  
_Besides, I know you can count to five and seven.  I've seen you set explosives._

 _Yours,_  
_Jaal_

*  
You just doomed us both.  This is going to be terrible, and we are both going to wish you'd never heard of a haiku.  We might melt in shame.  
  
Also, if this haiku ever sees the light of day, I'll drive the Nomad off another cliff.

*  
_How can an object see the light of day?_

*  
It's an idiom.  It means if you ever share it with anyone else.

*  
_Dearest,_

_You chose to open your heart to me.  I would never betray that trust.  Though I may still find your attempt humorous._

_Please don't drive the Nomad off another cliff.  Gil conscripted Liam and I for two days repairing the damage._

*  
Jaal,

All right, you asked for it.  At least you'll get a laugh out of this exercise.  Brace yourself.  Here it is--my honest, best attempt at a romantic haiku.  One for the history books:  
  
Far across the stars  
Blue eyes and swirling rofjinn  
A chance encounter  
  
Now I think I'm going to crawl under my covers and dissolve.

*  
_Darling Fiona,_  
  
_I have heard far worse poetry in my time, and it is a sincere first attempt.  We may make a poet out of you yet.  More than that, I enjoy seeing the more romantic side of you, especially because it is not something you often reveal.  Is that selfish of me?  Most angara would consider it selfish, to witness something so beautiful in another and reserve it for oneself.  And yet, I cannot help but smile, knowing that you wouldn't try writing poetry for anyone else._  
  
_Yours,_  
_Jaal_

*  
Jaal,  
  
You're...really sweet.  I don't have anything more profound to say than that.  And maybe angara would consider this kind of exclusive sharing selfish, but I don't.  So stop worrying about it.  You make me want to share more, and that's a good thing.  For both of us.  
  
Since you liked my first poetic creation, there's more terrible haiku where that came from!  
  
Big damn Architect  
Roars and shakes the ruined earth  
Asses on fire  
  
Yours,  
Fiona

*  
_How wonderfully crude.  I'm showing that one to Drack._

*  
Awesome.  He'll probably forward it to Kesh too.  Let's see if we can get it turned into a memorial plaque on the Nexus.

*  
_A memorial for...what?_

*  
Resetting an Architect, of course!  I mean, I can hope, but we're more likely to get bitter recriminations than plaques from the Nexus.  It's always "Pathfinder, why isn't every planet overflowing with coconuts?"  Or "Pathfinder, do my job for me."  Or my personal favorite, "Pathfinder, why can't you pull a homeworld out of your ass?"  
  
Sorry.  That got a little bitter.  I didn't mean to rant at you.  Maybe I'll ask Reyes if the Collective can carve that poem into a cliff face on Kadara.  
  
-Fiona

*  
_Dearest Fiona,_  
  
_My people share pain as readily as joy.  I know you often hide your pain and frustration.  And while I will never completely understand why you do, I want you to know this: I adore you, with all the flaws and strange qualities that make you so unique.  If you were perfect, you would not be Fiona Ryder, Pathfinder from the Milky Way, who enjoys driving off cliffs, reading romantic letters, and casting a light into the unknown.  And I would not enjoy your company as much as I do._  
  
_Please think on what I said.  I ask this not for my benefit, but for yours._  
  
_Yours,_  
_Jaal_

*  
Dearest Jaal,  
  
OK.  I do feel better now.  Thank you.  
  
Sometimes when I'm with you, or on Aya and surrounded by angara, I wonder why humans are the way we are.  Why we hide so much from each other.  Wouldn't we be better off if we were completely open and honest about how we felt?  Logically, that makes sense, but our aversion to sharing ourselves in public is more than cultural, I think.   I can only speculate on its evolutionary origins.  It's a fundamentally ingrained survival instinct, and it's a difficult one to overcome.  
  
I'm sorry if it sounds like I'm making excuses.  I hope you can be patient with me.  For what it's worth, just being in the same room as you, or reading your emails, helps take the edge off the stress.  
  
Yours,  
Fiona

*  
_My dearest,_  
  
_Evfra and the Moshae would both say that patience isn't one of my strongest qualities.  But for you?  You were patient with building my trust when you first fell out of the sky.  I am more than happy to repay that patience._  
  
_After all, you waited six hundred years to be here, now.  That alone is breathtaking to me._  
  
_Yours,_  
_Jaal_

*  
Thanks.  I really appreciate it.  But I don't think I should get much credit for patience either.  I was asleep that whole time in cryo.  It's not like I was sitting around playing Tetris and waiting to crash on Aya.

*  
_Tetris?_

*  
Only the greatest achievement of my people!  
Archive file attached: 3.0 MB

*  
_What have you done to me?  Why can I not stop humming this music?_  
  
_Why do I see falling blocks whenever I close my eyes?_

*  
>:)

*  
_You are a devilish, ingenious, maddening woman._  
  
_And I love that about you._


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The emails between Ryder and Jaal get steamier...and move to some more serious topics of discussion. This chapter takes place between Jaal's romance commitment (meeting his family) and his love scene on Aya.

Dear Jaal,  
  
Your family was wonderful.  And you...you're wonderful beyond words.  I'm literally spinning in my desk chair and giggling like an idiot because I'm so happy and excited.  Despite the Archon, despite the kett, despite a cluster that seems out to kill me at every turn...there's you.  I'd say I'm the luckiest girl in the galaxy, but that sounds so awful and cheesy.  
  
Fuck it.  I'm saying it.  Luckiest girl in the galaxy.  In two galaxies.  Right here.  
  
Yours,  
Fiona  
*  
_My darling one,_  
  
_I can imagine your laughter.  The way it slowly spreads from your lips and throat to the rest of your body.  The way your eyes shine and your body doubles over.  The little hiccups you make as you try to calm yourself, whicn only makes you laugh harder.  And the blush that comes to your cheeks when you can finally gasp for air.  It's a beautiful vision._  
  
_Indulge my curiosity for a moment; what do you see when you think of me?_  
  
_Your dearest,_  
_Jaal_  
*  
It's not something I see, actually.  When I imagine you, I feel you holding me close.  It's like the rest of the universe disappears, and you're the only person who exists.  You're warm, strong, you smell like the flowers on Aya, and I can hide in your arms forever.  All of my worries melt away, and I'm weightless.  
  
Also, I definitely find guys who are bigger than me attractive.  You look like you could bench press me one-handed, you know?  I suppose Drack could too, but all the kett bones aren't really my thing.  
  
-Fiona  
*  
_I asked Liam what "bench pressing" meant.  It is...much more innocent than I originally envisioned._  
  
_You want me to lift you above my head while I'm lying on my back?_  
*  
Idiom.  Technically, metaphor and a little hyperbole.  
*  
_I hate your language sometimes._  
*  
Sorry.  You haven't even met the quarians yet.  A lot of their common phrases are unique to them, and they are pretty culturally isolated.  So even our translators don't distinguish all the phrases and subtleties.  And the drell...the drell would give you such a headache.  I had a drell colleague who loved to talk about the beauty of the sea when we were on artifact digs.  It took me a week to realize she was talking about their afterlife, and not the actual ocean.  
  
I found out when I invited her to the beach with a friend.  Turns out she couldn't even swim.  That was embarrassing.  
*  
_Do you enjoy the water, darling one?_  
*  
Yeah.  I love swimming.  We lived pretty close to the beach on Earth.  Sunshine most days of the year, clear blue ocean as far as the eye can see.  I could swim almost as soon as I could walk.  I don't know if you have surfing in Andromeda, but on days when the waves were good, we'd take our surfboards out into the water and ride the waves.  Scott was better at it than I was, but I didn't care.  There's nothing like the thrill of catching a wave with enough kinetic energy to propel you all the way home.  
  
Attached vid: hawaii_summer_2180  
*  
_That...looks very dangerous.  You had no breathing apparatus?  Safety equipment?  What happened if you lost the floatation device?_  
*  
Oh, Jaal.  Humans are bouyant in water.  We have enough body fat to float even without the board.  And if you know what you're doing, you can tell if a wave's going to break at the wrong time and brace for it.  
*  
_Oh.  I did not know that.  I always wondered why your bodies were so much softer than ours.  Or any of the other Milky Way aliens, for that matter._  
*  
...you calling us squishy?  
*  
_You are.  And yet, I adore that about you._  
  
_Every time I kiss you, I marvel at how much strength is contained beneath your skin.  You can scale mountains, leap across ravines, keep up with Drack in a bar fight, and yet I would never know that from touching you.  You feel soft.  Your body and skin mold to mine.  Your hair parts under my fingers.  Your pulse beats so closely to the surface.  And yet, your strength of body and mind gives monsters pause._  
  
_It is a fascinating contrast.  Something else I want to figure out._  
  
_Your dearest,_  
_Jaal_  
*  
Damn it, Jaal.  How am I supposed to be mad at you for calling us squishy when you follow it up with something that makes me blush?  
*  
_You are not supposed to be angry, darling one.  That is the point of..."sweet talk," I believe you call it? :)  I can continue, if you like._  
*  
Hah!  Sure thing, Jaal.  Sweet talk me.  I'm in the mood for an ego boost.  
*  
_My darling Fiona,_  
  
_Let me talk about your eyes.  Human eyes come in such a dizzying array of colors and shapes, and almost none of them are blue like ours.  Angara say that the eyes of lovers are pools in the same waterfall, flowing into one another and coming together in the river below.  How could that sentiment be possible with eyes that were so alien?  But there is more to a waterfall than the river.  There are the plants that grow along its banks, the sun shining overhead, the pebbles beneath its surface._  
  
_To me, your eyes are the life that the river nourishes.  Green and golden leaves that shadow the riverbank.  Your eyes were the window into your soul for me, the starting point in a long journey of discovering everything that I adore about you._  
  
_Your dearest,_  
_Jaal_  
*  
That's the most romantic thing anyone's ever said to me.  I'm a little overwhelmed, to be honest, but let me try to reciprocate.  
  
Have you ever heard yourself talk?  Of course you have, but the next time you decide to sweet-talk me in person, listen a little more closely.  You can probably hear my heart pound, and my breath catch.  I'll stand there in complete silence, totally lost in your voice.  You could be reading the Tempest's technical specs, and your voice would still be enough to make me lose my mind.  
  
I'd like to hear you sing at some point.  I'm sure it would be incredible.  You taught Liam a song, didn't you?  
  
Your dearest,  
Fiona  
*  
_I taught Liam that song because I thought it would be funny.  And it was.  But you are different, irreplaceably special.  If I were to sing for you, I would not make light of it in such a way.  I would need time, preparation, thought...to make sure the song meant everything to you that it did to me.  But yes, someday, I would like to sing for you._  
*  
Shit.  I just remembered exactly what you taught Liam.  That wasn't what I had in mind.  Not that I'd be _opposed_ to the idea, but you and I still have a lot to figure out, right?  It's a little early for that?  
  
Now I'm babbling.  I'll just ask it: did I accidentally propose to you?  
*  
_Haha!  No, you did not.  Though I find your response strange.  Do humans not discuss their futures with their partners?  I know your people also marry and have children, often with one partner for your whole lives._  
*  
We do, but like everything in culture, it's more complicated than that.  You told me that most angara seek reliable and stable partners.  Humans vary wildly in how they approach relationships.  Some prefer casual flings, some are more committed, and there's everything in between.  As a result, in human culture, it's considered presumptuous to discuss things like marriage or children unless you've been together for a lot longer than we have.  
  
Personally, I don't mind you bringing it up, but it's not something I'm thinking about.  I still have the kett, planetary viability, and ten million other things on my mind.  Besides, all responsible Initiative colonists are still on contraceptives for the foreseeable future.    
  
-Fiona  
*  
_Dearest,_  
  
_Thank you for being honest with me.  I will respect your culture as you've respected mine.  We don't need to discuss our future until you're ready.  I am in no rush.  I just realized today that you have more freckles after you've been in the sun and heat.  Do we have any plans to go back to Eladaan?_  
  
_Jaal_  
*  
You like the freckles?  
*  
_They remind me of angaran skin patterns, though ours don't react to sunshine.  They vary with our bioelectricity.  Angara sometimes explore a lover's body by following those patterns with our hands, lips, and tongue.  What do you think?  I know you like to learn as much as I do.  Would you enjoy it if I found and kissed every freckle on your body?_  
  
_Your dearest,_  
_Jaal_  
*  
Jaal,  
  
There is...a lot of blushing going on right now.  Blushing, a few anatomy textbooks, and a whole bunch of other things to try running rampant through my imagination.  It's a good thing SAM isn't as easily distracted as I am, or we'd be a worthless Pathfinder team right now.  
  
Sorry.  That was a lot of rambling.  Short answer: we won't know unless we try, and I am  _very_ eager to try :)  
  
Your dearest,  
Fiona


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter begins after Jaal's love scene on Aya, once he and Ryder are in an established relationship.

Dear Jaal,  
  
You could have taken me anywhere.  Aya, Havarl, some random Remnant vault, Voeld...ok, maybe not Voeld.  I don't find the cold very sexy.  The point is, as much as I enjoyed Aya, I just want to be with you.  You're the most warm, caring, attentive lover I could hope for.  I'm so happy I could sing...except no one wants to hear that.  All of the Ryders are pretty tone-deaf.  
  
There are so many things I want to try with you.  We should stop by the tech labs the next time we're aboard the Nexus.  I have an idea, but I need a controlled environment to try out this concept.  And not aboard the Tempest.  Lexi always seems to find out, and she always fusses.  
  
Love from,  
Fiona  
*  
 _Darling one,_  
  
 _I've always admired your ingenuity, and I am genuinely curious.  But please send me a copy of the schematic first.  I remember what happened the first time you tried to reverse engineer a kett rifle._  
  
 _Jaal_  
*  
Oh ye of little faith.  Those were only eyebrows.  They grew back.  
  
I have a much simpler trick in mind.  Humans have bioelectricity, just like angara.  We just lack the taon and pacemaker nucleus to control and project it.  It's pretty easy to take the bioelectricity that I do generate, and amplify it to be on par with an angara's so you can feel it.  I don't even need my combat armor.  Omnitools have emitters of their own, and those are more than powerful enough to generate an electric field.  Just need to customize the emitters and power cell settings, and voila!  A synthetic taon!  
  
Pretty cool, right?  I haven't had the time to figure out a good tech solution for the pacemaker nucleus, so I won't have any conscious control over the bioelectricity.  But so far, it's a solid proof of concept.  
  
Attached file: synth_taon1c  
*  
 _Fiona, I understand that our species are different.  I understand that being with you will feel different from an angara, and I do not care.  I love you, and you are human.  Please don't feel like you must do this for my benefit._  
  
 _Your dearest,_  
 _Jaal_  
*  
Jaal,  
  
I don't really know how to say this, so I'll just be as straightforward as possible.  I love you too, but for such a smart and sensitive guy, you...can be kinda dense.  You know what that means.  You've heard me say it to Liam before.  
  
I can tell that you took the time to learn human biology.  And I know you didn't do that because you felt obligated--you did it because you were curious, because you _wanted_ to.  I'm learning about angaran biology because I _want_ to _._ The only difference is that I can't interact with all of your biology without a little technological assistance.  Back in the Milky Way, the hanar and the drell did something similar.  Some drell got implants so they could understand and see hanar bioluminescence.  
  
I like the idea of being able to communicate with you on a different level.  I want us to know one another, in as many ways as we can.  Does that make sense?  
  
-Fiona  
*  
 _Yes.  Your heart and mind are united in this venture, and I see that now.  Thank you for explaining._  
  
 _I'll meet you on the Nexus._  
*  
Oh, one more thing I forgot.  The synth taon will probably need a few more iterations, so I'd appreciate you sending me some feedback.  So try to remember, or take notes while we're testing it out.  For science!  
*  
 _My wonderful, ingenious, lovely temptress,_  
  
 _I am not sure how useful this will be to you.  I am...almost beyond words.  But since you asked "for science," I'll do my best._  
  
 _You and I stood there hand in hand, with your Nexus colleagues watching, and all I could think about was how your body sang to me.  Angaran bioelectricity ebbs and flows when we communicate, following the patterns of our conversation.  From you, I felt a constant hum of energy--thousands of tiny rhythms and movements all at once._  
  
 _It shouldn't have made any sense to me.  It should have been static, chaos.  But I know you well enough that every sensation, every interaction of our electric fields felt...like you.  Familiar, strange, and so very dear to me._  
  
 _Stars and skies, I love you.  Are you busy right now?_  
*  
I _was_ investigating a murder.  That can wait.  
*  
 _Darling Fiona,_  
  
 _It's late.  You're still asleep.  You left your prototype on.  I know I should turn it off, but I don't want to.  I'm also not sure how._  
  
 _I've realized that the field generated by the synth taon is wider than an angara's.  But don't change it.  I like the sensation.  You once told me that you enjoy feeling my arms around you, and now I know what you mean.  I could lie here for hours, listening to your breathing, feeling your hum envelop our bodies.  You look so peaceful like this.  I want to see you this way every night._  
  
 _I hope that was not too forward._  
  
 _Yours,_  
 _Jaal_  
*  
Morning, Jaal!  
  
I got your message.  Thanks for not waking me up.  And no, what you said wasn't too forward.  You even got the idiom right!  
  
Anyway, last night was perfect, and I could fall asleep in your arms every night.  Next time, though, remind me to turn the synth taon off.  It doesn't adjust its own power consumption, and now my omnitool's cells are all in the red.  I'll have to fix that in the next iteration.  
  
Love from,  
Fiona  
*  
 _Lovely temptress,_  
  
 _I know you're busy aboard the Nexus today.  I also know you dislike politics nearly as much as I do.  Let me give you something else to think about._  
  
 _I always wanted to take you back to the Forge.  You could spend weeks learning from our scientists and historians, but I have another reason for bringing you there.  There is a cave system along the edge of the cliffside.  The researchers lost access to it years ago when the vault malfunctioned, and vines overgrew the path.  But I suspect, with the vault restored, you and I could find our way down._  
  
 _Angaran poetry calls it the Lover's Path.  Every morning at dawn, sunlight floods the mouths of the cave.  The crystals along the ceilings and walls glitter red and gold, scattering their light over every surface.  I'm smiling now, imagining how radiant you would look._  
  
 _Can you picture it, my darling?  The valley below still dark, and the sky outside at dawn.  Your arms around my neck, my lips trailing down your throat, our hands tangled in each others' clothing.  No one would disturb us.  No one else could reach us.  Just you and me, alone in a cave full of light.  I think I would start just by touching you through your clothes.  You like to move when we're intimate.  You like teasing yourself, teasing both of us, until you're gasping and soaking through the cloth, and I'm half-blind with the need to make love to you._  
  
 _I could talk while we undress each other, since you like my voice.  I could translate everything that my body says with bioelectricity.  You intoxicate me.  You make me helpless with longing.  You could ask for every star in the sky, the secrets within the fisher's lure, the suns from their orbits, and I would not rest until I'd laid them at your feet.  The more I'm with you, the more I love you.  And the more I have you, the more I crave you._  
  
 _Ah, my darling, imagination drives me to distraction.  Please tell me what happens next?_  
  
 _Your dearest,_  
 _Jaal_  
*  
Oh my god.  Wait for--just two seconds, you crazy angara.  
*  
 _Can you stop whatever you are doing?_  
*  
Jaal, I was in a meeting.  An important one.  I had to pretend I was having an allergy attack, double back toward the Hyperion med bay, and hide in SAM node.  You're pleased with yourself.  Maybe you're even hoping I'll storm back onto the Tempest, shove you against a wall, and fuck you senseless.  
  
But you know what?  You decided to mark your message "urgent," knowing I'd open it no matter where I was.  You said I could decide what happens next.  So here I go.  
  
Clothes were coming off, I think.  We've gotten pretty good at that now.  But since we're at the Forge, in beautiful crystal caves, I want time to just look at you.  I can't get over how different we look, and I never want to.  When I see you, gloriously naked in that sunrise, I remember how unlikely all of this is.  I remember how many things had to happen for us to be together, and how much you mean to me.  
  
Jaal.  My dearest.  You said the Forge was sacred to your people, so let me worship you there.  Lie down.  Relax.  And while you are, let me explore every inch of you.  Let me show off my extensive knowledge of biology; I promise you'll enjoy it this time around ;)  I know you're sensitive all down your spine, but only when I stroke a certain way.  I know licking the ridges on the side of your head makes you howl.  I know you freeze, and tears flood your eyes when I kiss your palms.  Because hands are symbolic for both our species, and this matters so damn much to us that we can't contain it.  
  
I love everything about you.  I love how strong you are, and how you surrender that strength to me.  I love how gentle you are, with your hands framing my face even when you're gasping for air.  I love the sounds you make when you move inside me, the black and star-blue in your eyes, the smell of perfume and sweat in the air.  I love how you can make me feel safe and beautiful and insane all at the same time.  
  
I've never done this for anybody else, but let me lay my feelings at your feet.  Bring me to the Forge, Jaal.  Make love to me until it's long past sunrise, and we've forgotten everything but each other.  Promise me, my dearest.  
  
Fiona  
*  
 _Fiona.  My stars and sky._  
  
 _When we first started writing letters, you said you weren't good at being romantic.  Look at us now._  
  
 _I promise.  But you know that.  You knew when you asked.  So come home to me, and I will promise you all over again._  
  
 _I love you._  
 _Jaal_

**Author's Note:**

> The fluff for these two is overwhelming my brain :D Thank you all for reading, and as always, constructive feedback is appreciated!


End file.
